If you had your time over again.

[asimov]

Hi guys.

This is basically a "In hind-sight" hypothetical thread, where if you had to do it all over again, knowing what you know now about telescopes etc....What would be your ULTIMATE weapon/s of choice!? Plus accessories, lol..(keep it semi realistic);)

Mine would be:

Probably a 16" SCT of some description. With goto..& any other mod-con that you can buy to put on such a scope. In an observatory, naturally!

An APO 5" refractor on a losmandy EQ mount for those lazy nights when I can't be bothered looking through the big one. Both scopes with ED 80 finder's perhaps? :confuse3: Both scopes remotely operated from my house if I'm feeling lazy, & viewed on the computer.

Top of the line ccd imagery gear.

All pentax & nagler EPs....no low budget cheap stuff!

That's about it really.. That's not asking too much, now is it? ;)

[slice of heaven]

I'm happy with my lot :thumbsup:
The 12" Parks has served me well. Simple to setup and use.
It's been basically faultless, given me great views and has never been a money pit.

EDIT: When I bought the dob I had a couple of choices
1.... Did I want the 12" F5 dob or the 6" F10 refractor (or both) the old chap had to offer ? Same price!!!!
2.... Did I want the 2" focuser and 2 eps or the 1.25" focuser and 4 eps ?

Knowing what I know now I should have at least grabbed the original 2" focuser for the dob.
But for the price he was asking I should have grabbed BOTH :doh:

[ving]

probably what i currently have... cause in hindsight, i cant really afford anything else :P

[Starkler]

Im happy with my setup also. The 10 inch dob is the perfect comprimise for me between aperture, portability, ease of use and setup/knockdown time.

One thing I might have done differently is to not muck around with the few cheapy widefields I bought. The lesson with an f5 dob is , be happy with good plossls, or prepare to spend on the top quality eyepieces, anything in between is a waste of money.

[asimov]

Sounds like you guys had some really good advise from other astronomers perhaps? (Or perhaps you were just smarter than me...:D ) before you went out & bought your scopes? Im my case, I was the only person around in my area that was into astronomy...no advise on what to buy from anyone, So I had to do it the hard way & bought things on the trial & error basis. :doh:

After saying all that, I'm happy with what I have. No real regrets, just a few little one's.;)

[ballaratdragons]

When I did the thread about 'What Astro gear would you purchase with $50,000' I put the 16" Meade Starfinder on EQ with GoTo etc..

But that was fantasy land. You are asking what would we get in reality.

I suppose I would have still bought exactly what I've got, my 12" Dob. For the $'s I had to spend it WAS the best buy for me.

All my gear is worth around $1200 (scope, EP's, Barlow) and there is no way I could get a decent GoTo with only that much.

[robin]

Make mine a meade 10" (or 12" if i had a space to pier mount it) LX200 SCT

[slice of heaven]

I had NO IDEA and no-one to ask either, wasnt cold enough to have ice in space back then. ;)
The size impressed me, the trial views impressed me even more and the deal was done.

[ving]

the best advise john, the best.

always research before making a purchase... its not my motto but it should be :D

[ballaratdragons]

VINGS MOTTO: Always resurge before making a Purse Chase!

[asimov]

My 'ultimate weapon' or my wish list, if you like...I dont reckon it's totally out of reach for me! After I get rid of all my gear, & move to America, I intend to work real hard & save every penny...until I get my dream set-up! Ok, it may take me 20 years to achieve it. Everyone has to have a goal in life I guess, & this is mine. :rofl: If I dont pull it off..no biggie! I'll settle for an ED 80....But I draw the line with EPs! NO crap quality ones for me! :D

[ving]

umm... thanks Ken :rolleyes:
:poke:


Ps: john, dont forget a ED-2 review. in your f5 of course :)

[GrampianStars]

"In hind-sight" would have given up cars earlier
then I would have a 30 inch ROCS by now :D

[dhumpie]

Make mine a 14" f/4-5 truss dob (the largest scope I can use without a stepladder) and a 25x100 fork mounted binoculars for wide field scanning. That pair would keep me happy for years to come.

Darren

[Dave47tuc]

If I had my time re equipment over agian I would not change a thing :D

Its been fun so far and hope it will be for many many more years to come :thumbsup:

When I first got onto this forum i said,

" stop worrying what Joe Bloggs has down the street and enjoy the scope and eyepieces you have"

Still stands today and forever more. ;)

[Starkler]

I spent many many hours researching reviews and scanning the yahoo groups.
The internet is such a wonderful tool isnt it :D

P.S. Dhumpie I would go down the same road if I lived in a dark sky area.

[ballaratdragons]

I got in here and asked lots and lots of questions before I got my GS 12"er.

Then I asked lots and lots more before I got my 2" SuperView, ditto on the 2" Barlow.

This site and it's members saved me a lot of heart ache!

[dhumpie]

This site is great isn't it :) Heaps of experience astronomers here with good advice...

Darren

p/s; we should give Mike a big pat on the back for starting this forum.

[chunkylad]

You guys have done all the hard work for us noobs!:thumbsup:

I had an idea of what I wanted before I saw this site, and now those ideas have changed. My ambitions exceeded both my skills/experience and my wallet lol.

As soon as $$$ permit: within a couple of weeks, that is, I'll be ordering a 12" Dob from Andrews, with a Crayford focusser, fan and some Plossl EPs; plus a Cheshire EP and an apochromatic Barlow. Better quality (Nagler) Eps will follow, as the treasury permits. I reckon this will keep me occupied for quite a while.
If I hadn't seen this site, I'd be none the wiser :doh: , and ultimately dissapointed with my choices and unrealistic expectations. Thanx heaps.

Cheers

[asimov]

I'm sure I speak on behalf of everyone here Chunks...It's a pleasure to help newbies out!...we dont want to see you regret a purchase weeks/months or even years down the track. I wish I had some of this advise when I was first setting up!

Top decision on the future naglers too.